New Zealand ended 2024 with its lowest per capita road death rate in over 100 years, according to provisional data.
The country recorded 289 road fatalities, marking the first time the toll dropped below 300 since 2014. This represents 5.4 deaths per 100,000 people, the lowest rate since the 1920s.
Dylan Thomsen, a road safety spokesperson for the New Zealand Automobile Association (AA), said the decline reflects significant progress in reducing road fatalities.
“We’ve had a historic year overall for less deaths on our roads. Fifty-two fewer New Zealanders were killed this year than last year in a crash and, if you look at the size of our population, it’s the lowest rate of road deaths we’ve seen in a century,” he said.
In 1923, New Zealand’s population was just under 1.4 million, and 59 road deaths were recorded, translating to less than 4.5 deaths per 100,000 people. By comparison, the 2024 population of 5.33 million experienced a rate of 5.4 deaths per 100,000.
While the reasons for the reduction are not fully understood, Thomsen pointed to stricter police enforcement of speeding and impaired driving as likely factors.
“The police deserve major credit for the big effort they have been delivering around enforcement,” he said.
Economic conditions may also have played a role, with reduced road use potentially linked to rising living costs.
“People tend to drive less when money is tighter – the slowing of the economy and higher cost of everything may have been encouraging people to use their cars less so their income could be spent elsewhere,” Thomsen said.
Despite the annual improvement, December 2024 saw nearly 40 deaths, the highest monthly total of the year.
Thomsen expressed concern about this spike, saying it highlights the unpredictability of road safety.
“It shows it only takes a few tragic moments for things to change very quickly. The number of fatalities in December was concerning, especially after we’d done so well for most of the year,” he said.
Looking ahead, Thomsen said the AA hopes to see further reductions in the road toll in 2025.
“If we all take care to drive to the conditions, stick to the rules and look-out for one another, we can give ourselves the best chance of having an even safer year on the roads in 2025,” he said.
